Christopher Barischoff

CG Supervisor

[email protected] - 818-521-6652

Fiat-Lux.co

Statement:

I am a supervisor who leads by example. I focus on building up trust and respect with the teams that I work with by ensuring that my artists’ needs are well met. I believe a good team is one that feels appreciated, so I work to maintain a sense of gratitude towards every member, even the difficult ones. I am a seasoned 3D Artist with over 11 years of industry experience. I’ve led teams of artists to deliver sequences on time, within budget, and up to the quality level required. I work closely with other departments to get rid of pipeline annoyances and drudgery and make sure artists can focus on what they do best. I am a skilled and experience lighter, able to create master light rigs and render settings for the team, and optimize render speeds on most current render engines. I have used many different pipelines over the years, and I know what works well, what doesn’t work, and when to use different methods. I have experience designing pipeline tools and workflows to keep the teams happy and running effectively.

Work Experience:

Brand New School - July 2019 - Present - CG Supervisor

At Brand New School, I am the CG Supervisor for many different types of advertising projects. I help divide the fulltime CG staff’s time among the active projects, work with the recruitment to manage our freelance staffing, sit with the Head of Production to bid projects accurately and within a reasonable budget, work with directors to pitch jobs in a realistic way, and manage the overall CG production on 3D-oriented jobs. I upkeep the pipeline with help from our pipeline TD. I support our artists as they run into problems or crunchtime, and I also do hands-on 3D work where needed. I maintain the quality of our CG, ensuring it is the best that we can offer with our resources.

Jagermeister, Google Stadia, Walmart Smart Style, Starbucks, Waymo, Adobe

Storybots, Inc. - April 2017 - July 2019 - Lighting Supervisor, Workflow TD

At JibJab/Storybots I am the Lighting Supervisor on Ask the Storybots on Netflix (season 2 and 3, and A Storybots Christmas). Apart from setting an example in terms of workload and quality with hands-on lighting of shots, it is my job to make sure our renders make it out on-time and up to the quality level that our budget allows. I oversee the team, reviewing all content before it makes it to the director. I solve CG problems that my team (or other CG teams) have, and I work to maintain our CG pipeline, and keep it running smoothly and improving in features. I lookdev new assets, and create master light rigs and template files, as well as delegate tasks and shots to team members. I work with production to keep the budgets and schedules working well, and to avoid any hiccups or bottlenecks.

A Storybots Christmas (2017), Ask the Storybots Season 2 (2018), Ask the Storybots Season 3 (2019)

Gnomon School of VFX - April 2018 - Present - Professor

At Gnomon I am a Lighting and Rendering professor for their certificate program. I teach second and third year students who already have an understanding of basic 3D how to light and render in a production environment. I create and update course lesson plans and materials, grade assignments, and conduct weekly lectures

Lighting and Rendering I, Lighting the CG Portrait

Recent Freelance Work Experience: ​

Framestore - December 2016 - February 2017 - Senior Lighting/Lookdev Artist

At Framestore I worked as a Realtime 3D Artist for VR in Unity, and a Senior Lighting and Lookdev artist, as well as a 3D Generalist, using Maya with Arnold, Mari, and Mudbox. Framestore is a larger studio with a very extensive pipeline and custom toolset running on Linux:

Intel Smithsonian VR: I created textures, shaders, and baked lighting for 3D scan geometry of the Smithsonian museum, ​ including halls and exhibits, using Unity and Maya. I also advised and came up with solutions for creative problems with the interactive VR exhibit using the HTC Vive.

Byd: I modeled, textured and did lookdev on various environment assets, as well as shot lighting for two different TV spots for ​ Byd, a Chinese-based green energy and EV company. This commercial will air only in China.

Psyop - July 2015 - September 2016 - Senior Lighting Artist, Lighting Lead

At Psyop I work as a Senior Lighting Artist and Lookdev Artist using Maya with Arnold, HDR Light Studio, Mari, Zbrush, and Mudbox. Psyop is a medium-large sized studio with a very extensive pipeline and custom toolset:

Apple: I lit and rendered shots, and created master lighting rigs for the lighting team. This was under NDA and I cannot ​ ​ mention specific products or use this material in my reel.

Cricket Wireless: I lit and rendered shots, and created master lighting rigs for the lighting team. I did shot-specific interactive ​ ​ lighting, and RnD for specific lighting passes. I created some set assets and did some shading work, too.

Rise of Tyrants: I lit and rendered shots for this stylized game cinematic. I did RnD for specific lighting effects and passes. This ​ ​ game has been pulled from app stores, and this content was never released, so I cannot use this material in my reel.

Baked FX - April 2014 - November 2016 - CG Lead, Lighting Lead

At Baked FX, I work as a lead lookdev and lighting artist, as well as generalist using Maya with Vray, Mudbox, Xnormal, and Nuke. Baked FX is a small sized studio with not much of a pipeline or toolset, using mostly off-the-shelf software:

Nestle: I created around 40 print ads with various Nestle-owned water brands and different backgrounds. The water bottles ​ ​ were all 3D, so I started by modeling/shading a photoreal bottled water. Because of limited turnaround, I created a single print-resolution render, and then mastered a comp script using the STMap node in Nuke which allowed me and the rest of the comp team to switch out the backgrounds, reflections, refractions, and labels all on-the-fly, in post, using unfiltered UV passes rendered out of 3D. This proved a great success, and made this huge project manageable with a tiny team of 3 people.

ANDY: I did lookdev and shot lighting for several stylized character assets and shots for a web spot introducing the ANDY ​ ​ Android game emulator. This spot has not made it to release, and I cannot use this material in my reel.

Samsung: I lit and rendered a short photoreal Galaxy S5 announcement trailer. ​ ​ Etc: I’ve worked on many other small jobs at Baked including: Beats Audio, ZTE, Mercury Insurance, and some pitches. ​

CoSA VFX - November 2014 - July 2015 - Lighting Lead, Technical Director

At CoSA VFX I work as a Senior Lighting Artists and Lookdev Artist using Modo, Maya with Vray, Zbrush, Mudbox, and Xnormal. CoSA is a medium-small sized studio with no pipeline to speak of, using mostly off-the-shelf software:

Minority Report: I did lookdev for assets and lit shots for the Minority Report TV show VFX. These included texturing and ​ ​ shading a bronze statue, shading drone models, and lighting shots of statues, drones, cars, a robot cook, and buildings. I also assisted the matte painters with rendering cityscape assets for use in their matte paintings.

Gotham: I did modeling/sculpting, texturing, shading, and lighting for a photoreal promotional piece for the Gotham TV ​ ​ show. I was the lighting/lookdev lead, and set up a light rig for the team to use. I created a method for converting high-res sculpts out of Zbrush to VRMESH files for rendering in Vray without resorting to displacement maps. Each mesh was also run through Xnormal to generate curvature and edge maps for use with a bronze patina shader. This automated process made it possible to render and finish this promo spot on time, along with providing a separate print-resolution still render.

Gentleman Scholar - April 2014 - November 2016 - Lighting Artist

At Gentleman Scholar I work as a Senior Lighting Artist, Lookdev Artist, and 3D Generalist using Maya with Vray, Mudbox, Xnormal, and Zbrush. Gentleman Scholar is a medium-small sized studio with a somewhat extensive pipeline and toolset:

San Manuel Casino: I did lookdev for most environmental assets, built terrain using World Machine and Mudbox, and lit and ​ ​ rendered all shots for two of three TV spots. One of the two spots was removed from the air because of content complaints, so I cannot use this material in my reel.

GMC: I have done several large GMC jobs which include informative videos used at their dealerships, and TV spots. I ​ ​ worked on lookdev for various car models and environments, and shot lighting and rendering.

Education

Otis College of Art and Design; Lincoln Blvd, Los Angeles, CA • BFA - Digital Media department. Discipline in 3D Lookdev/Lighting.

Software

Fluent in: Maya, Vray, Arnold, Mental Ray, Mudbox, Zbrush, Mari, Substance Designer, Nuke, Photoshop, After Effects.

Working knowledge in: Unity Game Engine, Renderman, Redshift, Substance Painter, 3DS Max, Katana, World Machine.

Tools/Plugins used: Ptex, Vector Displacement, Vrmesh proxy, Tiled OpenEXR, UDIMs, Alembic Cache, Shave and a Haircut

Teaching Experience:

Gnomon: I teach Intro to Lighting and Rendering at Gnomon in Hollywood, CA ​

Animation: I taught traditional hand-drawn animation to a student over the course of 3 months. We covered ​ the basics of animation, and the student finished by creating his own animated short.

Otis College of Art and Design: Starting in 2010 I have taught 3D Lighting Demos at Otis College of Art and ​ Design. I have covered such topics as: “Outdoor lighting for VFX”, “Optimizing Vray Render Settings”, and “Rendering and Compositing in Linear Space”. I have received much positive feedback from students and instructors, and am continually asked to come back.

English, Science, Math, Art: I spent a summer teaching basic English, Science, Math, and Art in a village in Siem ​ Reap, Cambodia; poor families whose children were at-risk for human trafficking. The students were between the ages of 4-12.

Freelance Work Timeline:

Modeling, Texturing, Lookdev

AT&T Soccer (Logo Design)

June 2017 – AT&T ​

Senior Lighter/Lookdev (Modeling, Texturing, VR)

Intel Smithsonian VR Exhibit (CES 2017 VR demo)

Byd (TV Spot)

December 2016-February 2017 – Framestore ​

Lighting Lead (Lookdev, Modeling)

LuMee Duo (TV Spot)

November 2016-December 2016 – Baked FX ​

Lighting Lead (Lookdev, Modeling)

Nissan Rogue/Star Wars Rogue One (Press/Show Presentation)

September 2016-November 2016 – George P. Johnson/Synchrony Studios ​

Lighting Lead

Apple (Social Media Ads)

Cricket Wireless (Animated TV Spot)

July 2015 - August – Psyop ​

Texture/Lookdev

Fiat Lux: Custom Materials and Lights

January 2016—Present – www.fiat-lux.co ​ Lighting/Texture Lead/Compositing

Andy: Android Gaming (Web Animation Short)

ZTE (TV Spot)

August 2015—November 2015 – Baked VFX ​

Senior Lighting Artist

Cricket Wireless (Animated TV Spot)

Rise of Tyrants (Animated Web/TV Promotional)

July 2015 – Psyop ​

Lighting Lead (Sculptor, Shading Artist)

Minority Report (TV)

Gotham (TV, Promotional)

March 2015-July 2015 – CoSA VFX ​

Senior Lighter/Lookdev Artist

Motor Trend Awards (Print Ad)

GMC Cadillac (Showfloor Demo)

San Manuel Casino (TV Spot)

September 2014—February 2015 – Gentleman Scholar ​

Lighting Lead

Nestle Water (Print Ad)

Samsung Galaxy S5 (TV Spot)

Mercury Insurance (TV Spot)

May 2014—August 2014 – Baked VFX ​ ​

Lighter

Cadillac (TV Spot)

April 2014 - Gentleman Scholar ​

Lighting Lead

Skrillex (Concert Visuals)

Dyro (Concert Visuals)

Alesso UMF 2014 (Concert Visuals)

Kings of Leon 2014 Tour (Concert Visuals)

January 2014—April 2014 - Neither Field ​

Lighter

Once Upon a Time in Wonderland (TV),

St. Ives (TV Spot)

Oct 2013—Dec 2013 - Zoic Studios ​

Lighter/Compositing Lead

Skrillex: Scary Monsters Nice

Sprites (Concert Visuals)

July 2013—Aug 2013 - Production Club ​

Lighter

Castle (TV), Syngenta (TV Spot)

March 2013—April 2013 - Zoic Studios ​

Lighter (Modeling)

Gatorade: Lightning Bolt (TV Spot)

Feb 2013 - The Mill, Culver City ​ ​

Lighting Lead

Alamo (TV Spot)

January 2013—February 2013 - Brand New School, Santa Monica ​ ​

Lighter/Modeler

Morning Star (Game Cinematic)

November 2012—December 2012 - Zoic Studios ​

Lighting Lead

Utah Transit Authority (TV Spot)

August 2012—September 2012 - Roger, Los Angeles ​ ​

Lighting Lead

Google Fiber (TV Spot)

June 2012—July 2012 – Brand New School, Santa Monica ​ ​

Lighter

Nike+ (TV Spot)

May 2012 - Royale, Hollywood ​ ​

Lighter/Compositor

Warner Bros. “The Loft” (Film)

April 2012 - Prologue, Venice ​ ​

Lighter/Look-dev Artist

Poptarts (TV spot)

Cox Communications (TV spot)

December 2011—March 2012 - Duck Studios ​

3D Lighter

Once Upon a Time (TV)

Fringe (TV)

Panam (TV)

August 2011—November 2011 - Zoic Studios ​

Lighting Lead

Mass Effect III (TV spot/Tradeshow)

May 2011—June 2011 - Solid LA ​

3D Lighter/Lighting TD/Generalist

XFactor (TV spot)

Premium Rush (film)

Fringe (TV)

Wonder Woman (TV)

January 2011—May 2011 - Zoic Studios ​

3D Lighting Lead

Lego Star Wars (TV spot)

Bugatti Veyron (Spec.)

November 2010—January 2011 - The Core ​

Environment Modeler/Look-Dev Artist

3D Artist - COX Cable (TV spot)

August 2010—October2010 – Blind ​

Lighting Lead - TDC (TV spot)

June 2010—August 2010 - Frame DK, Copenhagen, Denmark. ​ ​

3D Lighting Lead

Lego (Animation; Spec. piece)

June 2010 - The Core ​

Lighter/Generalist/Compositor

Priest (Film)

Burlesque (Film)

May 2010—June 2010 – Zoic Studios ​

Lighter/Shading Artist

Adidas (TV/Web spot)

Ford (Tradeshow spot)

Lincoln (Tradeshow spot)

November 2009—January 2010 – Frame DK, Copenhagen, Denmark. ​ ​ Lighter

Manwich (TV spot)

September 2009 - October 2009 – Roger TV, Los Angeles ​ ​

Lighter

Asgrow (TV spot)

August 2009 - September 2009 - Blind, Santa Monica ​ ​

Scene Assembler

Bioware “Dragon Age” (Animation; TV spot)

June 2009 - August 2009 - Blur Studio, Venice ​ ​

Lighter

Yahoo! (Times Square Walgreens display)

May 2009 - June 2009 - The Core, Marina del Rey ​ ​

3D Generalist

Harmony in Speed (web)

April 2009 - Harmony in Speed website ​ ​

Lighter/Compositor

The Box (Film)

Terminator Salvation (Film)

June 2008—March 2009 - Pixel Liberation Front, Venice ​ ​